Get comfortable—I have some fascinating research to share with you today.

I think it’s safe to say most of us would love to live long, healthy, thriving lives. However, only around .01% of the world’s population live to see their 100th birthday.

I bet you’d love to know their secret!

Science might be able to help with that…in 1993, an important paper on longevity described a genetic mutation that doubled a roundworm’s lifespan (from 30 days to 60, which is impressive in roundworm years!).

That’s extraordinary—almost unbelievable—if you think about it. A single gene, double the lifespan?

It’s been called the Grim Reaper Gene, and it’s comparable to the IGF-1 receptor in humans. Now, what if similar mutations of the IGF-1 receptor explained why some humans live so long? And is it just a matter of luck if we get it or not, or can we control the expression of these genes?

In experiments around IGF-1, researchers have discovered that our liver produces much more of the growth hormone when we consume animal proteins. That means that those of you who are plant-based already have less of it in your bodies. And it’s crazy how fast it changes: IGF-1 levels have been shown to drop significantly just 11 days after people switched to a plant based diet. In women, the drop can improve their ability to reduce breast cancer growth; in men, it could suppress prostate cancer growth up to eight times more effectively.

Wow, right?

All because of that IGF-1 hormone, it would seem.

Of course, this hormone is an important part of the human body, and children need it to grow. It’s interesting to note, however, that the same IGF-1 deficiencies that can lead to dwarfism also seem to defend against cancer growth. In 200 cases of IGF-1 deficiency, not a single subject developed cancer.

Not one.

All this could explain why animal product-based low-carb diets seem to correspond to shorter life spans. But since these low-carb diets are high in both animal fats and proteins, it’s hard to say if it’s the fat or the protein leading to poor health…until now!

A recent study followed 6,000 American men and women over age 50 for 18 years. It found that those under age 65 who consumed a higher proportion of animal protein were at a 75% higher risk of mortality overall—and four times more likely to die of cancer. When the proteins were plant-based on the other hand, those higher risks disappeared.

Know what other habit makes us four times more likely to die of cancer?

Yep, smoking cigarettes.

Put very simply, these results suggest that consuming a diet high in animal protein is just as deadly as smoking.

When we look at how cancer really progresses, we realize that the most important thing is slowing cancer cell growth. Diets heavy in meat, eggs, dairy and other animal proteins seem to do just the opposite, by increasing IGF-1 levels in the body.

Plant foods (including proteins), on the other hand are free and clear—enjoy all you want! And drop the cigarettes while you’re at it.

When Donna was 12 years old, she had a dream to be a dancer and have a house on a property with some happy cows. However, this was the year that doctors diagnosed her with juvenile arthritis and began medicating her for the pain. At 17 years of age, she visited specialists who diagnosed her with chronic rheumatoid arthritis in her entire body and said she would be crippled by the time she was just 22. By then, she had spent her life training to be a professional dancer, however, had become 13 kilograms overweight and directionless.

Donna believes that animal cruelty is wrong and personally suffers when she sees the way humans treat animals, she has worked tirelessly for a decade to empower people and families to eat in alignment with their belief- cruelty-free.

Today, Donna is a Mum of a four-year-old, a Nutritionist, a popular plant-based health and lifestyle author and an Australian Latin Dance Champion. She is completely free of arthritis, pain, and medication.

With her experience transitioning from a meat-eating to vegetarian, to vegan, to purely plant-based diet, and with the tens of thousands of hours she’s put into learning about nutrition and human bodies, Donna has gone just as deep into the ethics behind what we eat which is how she came to found this charity.

Til The Cows Come Home is a charity that aims to be the World Vision for livestock animals, on a mission to rescue animals that are too sick or injured to make it to slaughter and re-home them to a sanctuary to live a full and happy life, just as Donna imaged as a child.

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